


a hollowed house

by littlelooneyluna



Category: robron
Genre: Angst, Happy Ending, M/M, Stabbing, kidnap, this was written before the spoilers properly came out!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-06-09 19:50:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15274959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlelooneyluna/pseuds/littlelooneyluna
Summary: liv pushes and it’s not long before lachlan’s tying her and robert up in an old barn to settle a score.





	a hollowed house

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this with the idea of liv and robert being kidnapped in mind, hope you enjoy!

It was always going to end up like this. Robert was always going to be laying cold against a steering wheel and Lachlan was always going to be the cause of it.

It was almost always just a simple matter of when and where.

 

••

 

It’s Liv’s involvement that clinches it all for him though, little Liv, gobby bright Liv, too fucking smart for her own good and right in Lachlan’s sights.

She was on to him from the start and _now_ -

“Listen to me Liv, you have to stay away from him.” It’s Robert, he’s by her door, she’s had another one of her loud rows with Aaron and her face is still bright red.

“You wouldn’t. If you knew what I did.”

And the thing is, living with Robert has clearly stirred her in a certain direction hasn’t it? It’s made her flipping Columbo and she thinks she can get information about _Lachlan_.

Robert huffs a little, pulls Seb closer towards him on the waist and gulps hard. Aaron’s had enough of all the spying and the determination but Robert knows how it feels to think something, want to run with it until it’s true.

“But that’s just it, you have a hunch.” Robert says carefully, he’s still standing by the door when he hears Aaron creeping up next to him, clearly not wanting to be seen by Liv.

He’s calmed down as well and Robert enjoys being their referee a little too much than he’ll ever admit.

Liv’s eyes widen. “A good one.” She insists, and then she’s rabbiting on about his _lies_ , about Gerry and what happened and Robert realises that she’s letting her heart rule her head.

Seb gurgles against his chest and Robert comes further into the room before he sighs, “I’ve been where you are, with him.” Robert looks at Seb, watches Liv do the same. “About the crash, the accident.” He looks down and then up again. “I convinced myself Lachlan was somehow to blame even when he -“

“I bet he was.” Liv says, scowls a little at the fact that Robert is almost trying to deny her of what she fucking knows. “I bet he caused it, blaming you would just have been easier than -“

“That’s _enough_.” It’s Aaron’s voice and he startles Robert out of his own shock at her words. Liv’s already on the attack, sprouting the same old evidence and suspicion and Aaron looks right at Seb. “You need to drop it. You leave Seb and what happened out of your little theories.”

Robert feels touched for a second, and he holds Seb closer towards his chest as he remembers the day.

The screaming.

The shouting.

Chrissie fucking _dying_ right in front of him.

“Apologise.” Aaron insists, and his eyes are darting all over the place because he can see the way Robert is crawling into himself.

Only Liv _won’t_ , and when she finally _does_ it’s empty and she still means everything she’s saying.

••

So it takes this to make her scared.

It takes a visit from the police accusing her of stealing and Aaron losing his fucking mind about it all.

“I didn’t do anything.” Liv shouts and screams and when she calms down she blames Lachlan. “It was him. I bet he just called the police for _no_ reason and -

“I’m sick of it Liv.” Aaron’s saying, Seb against his waist and pulling at his beard and making this less serious than it should be. “This _obsession_ -“ 

“Don’t you see how he’s trying to scare me out of getting to the truth?”

“And what _is_ that, what’s this _truth_ that he’s -“

Robert steps in, walks in on Liv accusing Lachlan of causing the crash and Gerry and everything else falls out just before Aaron gets the chance to shut her up. 

And then he’s rubbing at Robert’s arm and calling her daft. “She doesn’t know what she’s saying.” He says, “She’s just shaken up by the police and all that.”

He kisses his head, rubs at his back and Robert tries to forget about it all whilst he watches Aaron give Seb a bath.

“Liv wouldn’t have stolen anything.” Robert says, passes Aaron the soap as the younger man holds the baby’s back up straight.

Aaron nods. “I know that.” And Robert frowns at him. “Of course I know that. I knows he’s trying to scare her but I _want_ her scared. We know what he’s capable of doing.”

The whole lying about Robert abusing him suddenly springs to mind and it leaves everything unsaid.

Robert moves his hand towards the bath and ruffles Seb’s locks before looking up at Robert. “I’ll have a word with her about it all.” He says, and Aaron leans over and kisses him.

He does talk to her, she’s all knees pushed against chest and a pout on her face and she tells him that Aaron doesn’t understand the way he does.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Liv sighs. “You were his step dad. Or whatever. You know how he works, and what he does. He’s a born _liar_.”

“ _Exactly_.” Robert says, blinks quickly. “And you haven’t got _any_ proof against him so -“

“So just give up?” Liv clearly thinks it’s inconceivable to do such a thing. “Doesn’t Belle have the right to know who she’s -“

Robert tenses his jaw and sighs. “Yeah. But you’re just sounding like a kid who doesn’t know what they’re talking about, so for _us_ , just drop it okay?”

Liv frowns. “Let him get away with it?”

And he wants to say ‘for now’ but he hears Seb gurgling downstairs and they’ve got fair too much to lose now.

“Yeah. Just let it go okay?”

And Liv, she doesn’t.

 

••

 

“Pint?” Aaron’s got his arms around Robert, leans in and kisses his cheek and Robert already knows he’s in a good mood before he sits next to him.

He’s being soft around him lately, as if he’s fully aware that Robert’s been thinking about Lachlan for too long. 

“Yeah, I’ll get them -“

Robert tries to call Chas over when Liv runs in, and she clearly thinks it’s a marvellous idea to go and tell everyone exactly what she thinks about Lachlan.

She points the finger and he comes in, pointing one back and Robert’s already petrified for her.

 

••

 

So that’s how they end up agreeing to financing another trip for Liv, this time back to Sandra’s. Only she would rather stick pins in her eyes apparently.

“Just until it blows over okay?” Aaron tries to smile, wants to throttle Lachlan himself but he’s not an idiot. “He’s not worth you getting into trouble for.”

And she says _Gerry_ and he hides his face like he wants to _not_ believe what she’s saying about Lachlan’s involvement.

“This is for the best okay?” He rubs her back and packs her a bag and only falters when Robert’s by the door with his keys ready to take her and they see Lachlan out the window.

“Why should she have to run?” Robert says, determined, this anger in his voice as Lachlan disappears from view and Aaron can’t give him an answer. “This is her home, and we’re her family, she shouldn’t have to go because of _him_.”

And Aaron only needed that little persuasion didn’t he?

 

••

 

It takes another week of aggravation before Lachlan’s stepping it up a gear and Robert has to forcibly drag Liv into his car whilst the idiot practically goads them to ‘run away’ again.

“If you carry on like this he’ll -“

Liv’s all scowls and frowns and basically Aaron. “Let him Rob, then we’ll get what we need on him.”

Robert rolls his eyes, presses his foot down further until they’re right out of the village and he decides that a nice long drive will hammer home the point.

“You know I was the one who persuaded Aaron not to send you away again, because we want you _here_. If you carry on, he’d have won.”

Liv scoffs, pulls out her phone and that’s when Robert realises what a dangerous game she’s playing.

She’s texting and it all falls into place as he tries to keep his eyes on the road.

“It’s you. Are you flipping _mental_ Liv?”

Because Lachlan’s has accused her of it once or twice and now there’s _this_.

Liv shrugs. It’s almost like she thinks this is some big game and he doesn’t know what to do about it.

“He thinks he can scare me out of saying anythingbut I can do the same.”

Robert sighs hard, “You’re going to make it all worse.” He says, “Give me the phone.” He leans over and she pulls back and -

“Rob, stop the car.”

But he can’t, because it won’t let him.

And he’s screaming for the brakes to act like fucking brakes, pressing down over and over again as Liv leans over and tries to help him.

“They’re - they’re not working.” Robert squeezes out, tries to stay calm but he can’t, not with Liv panicking right next to him. She screams and he swerves instead, feels them heading fucking down hill and landing in the middle of nowhere, car rolled on its side and -

That’s how he ends up like this.

 

••

 

“Rob!” He hears her voice before anything else comes back to him, and then he sees Aaron, he sees Seb and Aaron and for a second he tries to smile but then Liv’s voice is back again and he can sense her panic. 

There’s a flickering in his eyes and then he’s opening them, “Liv?” He whispers, hands trying to be stretched out but then there’s all this pain suddenly and he has to hold his head.

That’s when he realises he’s tied to something, and Liv’s out in front of him, exactly the same as him. She’s got a cut above her eye, but then she looks fucking horrified, as if she knows something Robert doesn’t.

“Your - your bleeding a lot.” Liv’s got this look on her face and Robert feels his legs tied as he tries to get up to look.

“Don’t worry about me, just - where are we?” There’s this heaviness in his voice, and then it’s gone as he sees what looks like some old deserted shed. For a second he thinks of his mum.

“I don’t know.” Liv’s chin wobbles, “The car - it went off the road and - then he just came and dragged me out.”

And it’s him, it’s _Lachlan_ and -

“Don’t - don’t worry okay? We’re - we’re going to get out.”

Only that’s when Lachlan comes in.

He’s pulling open the door and this was always his master plan, scare the shit out of Liv and get Robert involved too just for good measure and it makes him feel sick.

“She’s - she’s learnt her lesson now.” Robert whispers, his head spinning as he looks down and sees his own blood splattering against the floor. He keeps saying it but Lachlan just ignores him because apparently that doesn’t even matter.

“I warned you little Liv didn’t I?” Lachlan’s all bent over her, brandishing something sharp and dangerous and Robert tries to explode out of this chair but he can’t, there’s an aching in his legs and he can’t breathe right.

“Please, just leave her alone.” Robert whispers, something quickens in his chest over and over again and then Lachlan turns towards him and smiles.

“Leave _her_ alone?” Lachlan sighs. “She’s the one who’s been chipping and chipping away at me for weeks.”

It’s true and Robert looks away, eyes flickering. “She’s sorry. She’s - Liv you’re _sorry_ aren’t ya?” 

“I am. I’m - I just want to go home.”

But he carries on doesn’t he?

And apparently this is all her fault, she deserves this, and Robert’s always had this coming as well.

“You think you know everything, but how can you?” Lachlan almost laughs. “You’re a stupid kid.”

“And what does that make you.” Liv spits, eyes hard now and it’s like she’s not scared of anything so Robert has to lose his mind even more for the pair of them.

Lachlan’s sick, sees the funny fucking side quite clearly and starts taunting them both.

“Someone capable of murder.” It turns Robert cold, and everything shatters in front of him as Liv gasps.

And he’s on this roll isn’t he?

“But you’d know all about that wouldn’t you?” Lachlan points at Liv and then at Robert. “You two eh? The bright sparks of your messed up family.” He laughs at Robert feels it cut through him. “Well not really. I mean you’ve ended up _here_ ‘cause you’ve pushed too far.”

And the thing is, Robert gets that. If this was a few years ago, he’d sit here and try to rile Lachlan up as much as he can but can’t now. He’s got too much to _lose_ now.

“We’re sorry.” Robert feels himself almost drifting in this awful way and Lachlan tells him he should be, there’s a list of things that Robert’s done and it ends with having to make Lachlan drag him out of the car without breaking anything too inopritant. “You cut the -“

“ _Yeah_.” Lachlan’s almost dead behind the eyes and Robert has never been so scared of him before, of this boy who was always too busy on his phone to ever be a danger to anything. He’s this _monster_ now and he won’t let him take Liv. “To get you here, to teach you a lesson. I thought of doing Aaron’s, but I thought this would be more interesting.”

“You’re - you can’t do this.” Robert slurs, and Liv looks right at him like she knows that he’s almost drifting away from him.

“But I am.” Lachlan frowns, eyes wide now. “And it’s _easy_.” He’s pacing the small space, looking between them both. “Because Belle - she already has her doubts because of you, the honouree _Dingle_.”

“So she’d hate what you’re doing now wouldn’t she?” Liv’s this mess but she’s trying to reason, and Robert’s proud. “If you let us go, we won’t say anything. I won’t tell Belle. We’ll just go home and -“

“To your happy little family right?” 

Liv squeezes her eyes shut, and Robert leans towards Lachlan with this pitiful look on his face. 

“To your cousin yeah.” He says, tries to appeal to some sort of morality but Lachlan’s wry smile as enough to make him give up on the idea.

“Who’s better off without you.” And Robert knows that isn’t true, he’s worked on himself for too long to just _take_ that. So he fights back, and he can barely fucking breathe because of whatever damage the crash has done but it doesn’t mean he gives in.

“Rob -“ it’s Liv, she’s crying and he thinks of Aaron suddenly. He thinks of him wondering where they are, tries to feel for his phone but Lachlan’s there before he can try.

He’s waving it around in front of his face, and Robert’s got to stare at his home screen. He’s got to stare at the picture of Aaron with Seb on his hip, Liv poking her tongue out.

“That’s your precious family right?” The screen is cracked, a split right across Liv’s face and it serves as this awful omen for a second. “The one you got after screwing over _my_ family.”

It all boils down to this. It will _always_ boil down to this and Robert will always be to blame. 

“I thought we -“

“Got passed that?” Lachlan’s fucking mad and Robert’s always known it but now, seeing him walking up and down like some sort of psychopath is more than he wants to think about. “How could I when you were _always_ to blame?”

“I know, I know -“

“I killed them ‘cause of you.” Lachlan speaks like words don’t have meaning and Robert forgets how to breathe.

 

••

 

He wakes up to the sound of Liv crying, he’s flat out on the floor now and she’s got a cut on her lip for her trouble.

“Hey.” He holds her face and she cries into it, says something about thinking he was dead.

“He’s not that tough.” He whispers back, eyes trying to be soft as he sights Lachlan in the corner of the room, looking down at a phone. “He wouldn’t actually -“

“He said he swerved the car - he said he had to kill Gerry -“

Robert’s face pales, drains in this terrible way and all he can see is Lachlan with blood all over his hands.

He sees his own blood and it turns him cold.

“Listen Belle, I’ll be back soon okay. I just - I just have to take care of something.” Lachlan’s voice is far away and then suddenly he’s right in front of him.

“Take care of something?” Liv mumbles, and Robert’s never seen her in such a state. “What, kill us?”

Lachlan sniffs, bends down a little. “Don’t tempt me Liv.” He says slowly, then looks right at Robert. “I couldn’t do that to you could I? You’re a part of the family.” Robert blinks like mad, sights a pool of blood near his knee and realises it’s his own. “But you.”

And that’s when Lachlan’s looking right at him.

“Lachlan -“

“I’ve been going about it _all_ wrong.” Lachlan says, almost triumphantly. “I hurt so many people to deal with everything _you_ caused. I should have just got straight to the problem.”

“Me.” Robert’s voice wavers as Liv holds in a breath, almost desperate not to scream anything out.

“You’ve finally got it.” Lachlan says, a smile on his face now. “You understand don’t you?”

“Understand?” Liv says suddenly but Robert just nods his head slowly. “Understand what?”

Lachlan looks right at her as he stands, reveals the knife he was brandishing earlier.

“That he has to be gone, for good. And I’ll stop -“

“Killing people?” Liv’s not so terrified anymore, she’s just like Aaron and he wants to tell her to calm down, save herself, just save her fucking self.

“Yeah.” Lachlan nods his head like he actually believes it and Robert lets him. “Yeah, he’s gone and - and me and Belle can -“

“This was about me. Leave him alone. It’s not his fault that -“

“It’s always my fault though isn’t he?” Robert says quickly, can hardly breathe as Lachlan keeps nodding his head. “So let Liv go and deal - deal with the problem okay?”

He’d take him dead over her any day of the week.

And she fights it, she fights and screams until Lachlan’s almost rethinking it all and Robert just _has_ to goad him some more.

“Come on, be a man and just -“

And he does it, he just brings the knife out and presses it straight into Robert’s side. He doesn’t even flinch as he does it either. He watches the knife stab and then he pulls it right back out again and Liv’s screaming almost overtakes the sound it makes when it clatters towards the floor.

“What - what have you done?” Liv’s shaking him, he can feel that, but not much else covers the way his whole body is screaming out in pain over and over again.

And it’s relentless but Lachlan surprisinglyisn’t. He just stands there like some little lost kid who Robert should feel sorry for. He’s all calm and collected and Liv’s working to untie herself as he stays silent and then backs away slowly.

“Leave it. He’s already going to die anyway.”

And he just goes, he blows out this big breath and leaves the way he came as Liv finally gets herself free and starts begging Robert to stay awake. And he wants to, but it’s hard, it pulls and pushes and he just wants to close his eyes but she won’t let him. 

“Take - take care of Aaron.” It’s all he can say now, there’s nothing more important than her knowing that, than her promising that she will. “Seb. _Seb_.” He tries not to get himself in a state, but that’s nearly impossible as he thinks of his little boy.

Liv’s over him, that cut on her forehead looking nasty through his blurred vision. “I won’t have to do that. You will. When we get out of here.” She’s pleading with him in this awful way and Robert’s never realised just how young she is.

She’s always been so brave and now there’s fucking _this_.

“You have to go.” He slurs, tries to sit up but everything tells him not to as Liv presses a hand down on the wound and he looks away from how bloody he is. “Go.”

“No.” Liv’s chin wobbles again. “I can’t leave without you.” And she means it. That’s the sad part about it all. “Aaron would kill me.” She almost tries to joke and Robert half smiles as he feels himself pulling in and out of reality.

When he closes his eyes he sees Aaron and it’s better that way.

“He’ll - he’ll get over it.” He whispers back, but she shakes him harder and then she’s crying again.

“He didn’t get to ask you. I can’t get back without you, he was meant to - to ask you before -“

She’s babbling and Robert tries to calm _her_ down like she’s the one dying.

“It’s okay.” He mumbles, only it isn’t is it? Liv tells him as much. “He didn’t - didn’t what?” He tries to get out as fast as he can and that’s when everything around him shatters.

“To marry him again.” Liv blurts out, face red, eyes sad and hands shaking as she tries to stop crying. “He was going to and now I’ve taken you away from him.” 

Robert’s eyes flicker as he thinks about it. He imagines _Aaron_ proposing and almost can’t picture it actually happening. It melts him in this amazing way. Aaron down on one knee like that, saying those words _again_.

“Marry me again?” He stumbles out, and it sort of makes Aaron’s weird request for him to be back at a certain time make _sense_. Liv nods and then she’s shaking at Robert’s side.

“So you can’t - can’t leave.”

“You have to. Leave.”

And she won’t. She’s exactly how he was three years ago, without the water this time.

“I’m not leaving you.” Liv sobs, and he holds her face as his own hand shakes a little. “Rob -“

“He wanted to marry again.” Robert whispers, and it’s the last thing he thinks of, a half smile painting his face before the world turns silent.

 

••

 

The phone leaves his hand, slips, falls, crashes and he’s in the hospital before he can think about anything else.

Liv’s there, sat up in this bed with tears falling down her face with her shoulders moving up and down and up and down like she can’t control it.

“Liv.” He whispers her name and she’s in his arms within seconds.

She’s crying and crying and everything around them halts until he’s asking about Robert and she breaks.

“I tried to - to keep him awake, I tried to - run and get help for him but he was - wouldn’t -“

It’s like something breaks inside him. It just breaks and he just falls towards her and can’t say anything.

“He’s not -“ He can’t be more like, the _thought_ of it makes Aaron’s stomach swirl and swirl until a nurse is telling him to calm down. “He was - Liv said he wasn’t waking up?” His voice seems to crack just at the end and he’s left this shuddering mess off a man.

And apparently he needs a blood transfusion.

He needs to stay how he is for the time being, and that is -

A coma.

He has to stay in a _coma_ for the time being.

 

••

 

To say Aaron has a break down is sort of an understatement, he’s over his body, laying there so flat and unmoving and he keeps having to stop the tears falling down his face.

He holds his hand, presses a kiss against Robert’s cheek and watches the way his hair falls flat against his forehead. He’s done with the shouting about Lachlan, he’s done with the police and their questions and the fact that he’s pissed off somehow without being seen.

He’s _done_ with it all as he holds Robert and tells him to wake up, pleads, just fucking pleads with him to open his eyes and -

“Come on Rob.” He whispers, sniffs in a little and then gulps as he sees Liv watching from the window. He’s heard he story and he can’t be angry at her, not when she tried her best to save him, not when he tried to sacrifice himself  _for_ her. “Wake up for us.” He’s thinking about Seb, watches as Liv holds him by the waist and rubs at his back. “Lachlan can’t do this, he - he can’t do this to us.”

Only it feels like he has.

Only all along Liv was fucking right about the psycho and -

“I can’t lose you.” There’s the silence of the room masked by the way Aaron’s crying, the way the machinery has to keep on ticking and Robert is still laying there. He sill doesn’t want to move. “Not now, not ever. I just wanted to marry you.” He whispers.

And this day wasn’t supposed to go like this was it? There was roses and a steak dinner and the kids whisked off to his mum’s for the night whilst he got down on one knee and -

“I wanted to marry you again. You can’t - you can’t go before you’re my _husband_ , big stupid certificate to prove it.” He breathes in, wants to stop breathing all at once as he watches the way Robert’s body starts to shake against the bed and nurses rush in to do something about it and -

The ring in his pocket is this dead weight suddenly isn’t it?

 

••

 

Seb pulls at Robert’s growing stubble in what looks like comical confusion before his little head turns back to Aaron and pulls on the familiar beard.

“Daddy’s just - he’s reacted funny to something okay? But they stopped it and now he’s just - getting some more rest.” Aaron works it out in his head, eyes soft and head tilted down towards Robert before the door goes and Liv shuffles in.

She hasn’t slept and Aaron knows it’s guilt.

“I’m so sorry.” Liv’s twisting her lip, eyes watering as she looks down at Robert. “He was just tryna protect me and I kept pushing and -“

“You didn’t know what Lachlan was capable of.”

“But I did.” Liv panics, “I thought he’d done something to Gerry, I thought he’d caused the crash and -“

“He admitted it?” Aaron’s eyes widen a little and he thinks about how tortured Robert would have felt in the moment, all those months he blamed himself when -

Liv nods suddenly. “And then he - he lost the plot, he started blaming Robert and he got out this knife.”

Aaron cringes against it, head bowed now as Seb gurgles about.

“It’s okay. He’s - he’s going to be okay.” Aaron keeps saying it, it’s all he says, when in reality it feels like there’s this massive hole forming in his heart and he’s not allowed to say anything about it.

He’s had his meltdown and now Liv and Seb need him but it fucking _hurts_ because they were supposed to be _perfect_ now.

They were supposed to have it _all_ , and Robert could die.

The thought lingers into the dead of night, the police are guarding Rebecca’s so Seb is okay to stay with her, but Aaron’s not going anywhere.

He’s got a hand combing through Robert hair as he lays next to him in the bed. “The nurses think I’m mad doing this, perfectly good chair there but - I just have to be here with you don’t I?” He shudders a little as he looks down at the bandage over Robert’s stomach. “I need you to wake up otherwise nothing will be left.”

And because if Robert died on him, Aaron would _never_ be the same person again. He’d been missing something of himself and it’s soppy and stupid to think about but how can he deny it now that it’s so true? It’s a reality and he wants it to not exist. 

“I love you _so_ much you idiot.” Aaron’s got a hand on Robert’s chest and he holdshis breath for a second. “I promised I’d tell you more. I -“ 

There’s this heavy weight suddenly and he battles through it. “You can’t _die_.” He says, “You have to wake up and marry me properly okay?”

And his eyes fall, this sadness takes over him. “And Lachlan can go fuck himself ‘cause he isn’t taking you away from me okay?” He smiles a little faintly and then he’s got his head in Robert’s chest.

That’s when he feels it, someone stroking his hair and when he looks up, Robert’s eyes are blinking open.

“Yeah.” He says heavily. “I will.” It’s Robert, and he’s blinking over and over again.

Aaron’s already rising up and looking right at him, eyes wet and face red. Robert’s just laying there, he’s awake, he’s broken and bruised but he’s saying -

“Yes.” He says, and then he’s wincing as Aaron holds onto his hand and squeezes gently. “I’ll -“

“Marry me?” Aaron mumbles, “God you - you really heard all that?”

Robert nods his head slowly, winces again and then he’s shuddering. “Liv.” It’s pushes out and Aaron’s never felt so helpless before, he’s trying to pull at all the sadness in Robert’s eyes, all the fear, but it’s pointless.

Robert’s this awful mess, eyes red raw as Aaron tries to calm him.

“I told her to go, I told her that -“

“She’s safe, we’re all safe okay? He hasn’t ruined a thing, he hasn’t ruined anything okay?” It’s Aaron’s voice, only Aaron’s voice and he kisses Robert’s head, presses down and tries to hammer home the point almost desperately. “He’s going to be found and - and we’re going to be fine. 

It makes sense, it’s what Robert tells himself that he has to believe if he wants to stop being this wreck.

“He caused everything Aaron.” It’s vague and so much more needs to be said but Aaron just scoops in and looks so seriously at him, like he wants nothing more than to stop his pain. “The crash and -“ 

“He’s scum.” Aaron says, tending and Robert has to hold a hand on his back to calm him down. “But we don’t need to think about that now okay - I - just want you to be better.”

Robert nods slowly, blinks quickly. “I nearly - nearly lost you.” He says, and Aaron nods.

“I nearly lost you and Liv.” He says, and that’s a feeling he’ll never get over. “I nearly -“

“But I’m fine.” Robert’s eyes are shut, and then he opens them. “With you, I’m alright.”

He knows that, although everything is so scary now.

“I love you, you know.” Aaron whispers, eyes soft, tears falling. “I love you so much.”

And Robert has Aaron held against him all night.

 

••

 

“I told you, Liv’s fine, Seb’s fine.” Aaron says, watches Robert try and get out of the bed like he’s not just cheated death again. “You need to stay right there okay?”

Robert’s still this mess, he’s started playing with his hands and darting his eyes about whenever the door goes. So far it’s only been Liv and the police but it’s still enough to make him jump. 

“And Lachlan?”

Aaron gulps hard, “They’ve tracked him down.” He says, “Rob you don’t need to think about that yet.”

But it’s all he think can think about for a second, him pleading and everyone shouting and then the _knife_ and -

“We’re going to be okay.” Aaron says again, like he’s done a million times and Robert’s eyes fall on him. “I promise you.” He says.

“You promise?” Robert is this vulnerable boy suddenly, eyes still red raw and the nightmares of it all still there, still circling.

It makes Aaron nod his head, hold up Robert’s hand and kiss it. “As if your husband would let you down eh?” He’s soft with it and Robert’s eyes widen a little like he wants to say something before Liv comes through the door with Vic and Seb. 

“Am I interrupting?” Liv practically whispers, like she already knows and Robert keeps staring at Aaron with this smile on his face.

“Your brother was going to ask me something.” Robert says, almost silently, his face almost coming back to life, the paleness removed suddenly.

Aaron’s legs almost feel like jelly as Liv smiles at him, eyes wide and Vic bouncing Seb up and down. And then he’s silently rolling his eyes, hating the fact that there’s a crowd and Robert’s enjoying this all as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out the black box as Robert shuffles up in his bed.

And then Aaron’s on one bloody knee isn’t he.

“We’ve got a thing of doing soppy stuff in hospitals don’t we?” Aaron’s got this smile on his face and Robert can’t breathe around him. “I love you. I love _us_ and that’s stupid but I do. I love what we’ve got and I just want to marry you okay?”

Robert sniggers a little, has tears in his eyes already and they won’t budge, not for this.

“I get that.” Robert says, gulps hard and for a second he’s selfish, he just has to sit there and look at how lucky he is to have Aaron on one knee like this right in front of him. He’s got his hair all curled and unruly, a black top on, with a blue hoodie thrown over it.

Aaron smiles weakly. “So do you mind, marrying me properly? We can have a fancy certificate that you can frame in some expensive -“ 

“Yeah.” Robert says quickly. “Yeah I will. I’ll marry you idiot.”

And there’s a lightness for a second, there’s Aaron’s lips against his and Liv hugs him like she loves him in this new way now as Seb gurgles and laughs and Lachlan hasn’t ruined this.

Robert knows that, he knows that he’ll get this happiness because Aaron’s his, with this silver band and promises of a better them and they’re family and - 

Lachlan can be forgotten about for now.

**Author's Note:**

> i had to have another proposal in hospital because yk it’s their proposal place of choice! look out for another fic coming up over the weekend about the gas leak spoilers, it’s quite sad!


End file.
